An analysis of the families in twenty books, five taken from each of the 1980-1983 lists of Books for Young Adults, was used to determine if the families in the books accurately portrayed the American family. Three instruments were applied to the fictional families to gather information on the family history, characteristics, and relationships.
The families in young adult literature were found to accurately reflect the American family in marital status, number of children per family, and the persons with whom children were living. An unrealistic number of the families, however, were characterized as middle class or affluent. Only two of the families were classified as poor.
The nuclear family was the most common family structure in the books for young adults; the parental relationship was egalitarian which reflects the changing American families which have moved from the authoritarian relationship of the fifties. A majority of the mothers worked outside the home and were depicted in diverse careers.
The family members described their family's characteristics as more positive than negative. The strongest characteristic was the individualism of each member; the weakest was the togetherness of the family.
Missing from this group of fictional families were minority groups and families from sections of the United States other than the Northeast and Midwest.
","abstract_html":"<p>An analysis of the families in twenty books, five taken from each of the 1980-1983 lists of Books for Young Adults, was used to determine if the families in the books accurately portrayed the American family. Three instruments were applied to the fictional families to gather information on the family history, characteristics, and relationships.</p> <p>The families in young adult literature were found to accurately reflect the American family in marital status, number of children per family, and the persons with whom children were living. An unrealistic number of the families, however, were characterized as middle class or affluent. Only two of the families were classified as poor.</p> <p>The nuclear family was the most common family structure in the books for young adults; the parental relationship was egalitarian which reflects the changing American families which have moved from the authoritarian relationship of the fifties. A majority of the mothers worked outside the home and were depicted in diverse careers.</p> <p>The family members described their family's characteristics as more positive than negative. The strongest characteristic was the individualism of each member; the weakest was the togetherness of the family.</p> <p>Missing from this group of fictional families were minority groups and families from sections of the United States other than the Northeast and Midwest.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Wise, Elaine Vann"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Specialist in Education","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Teacher Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. James Brewbaker","Dr. Carolyn M. Cartledge","Dr. Anita Whitman"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":1984,"date_issued":"1984-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"1984-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:45:18Z","subjects":["Books for Young Adults","American Family","Family History","Family Relationships","Fictional Families","Curriculum and Social Inquiry","Liberal Studies"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/668","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. James Brewbaker","Dr. Carolyn M. Cartledge","Dr. Anita Whitman"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Wise, Elaine Vann"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Teacher Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Specialist in Education"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Books for Young Adults","American Family","Family History","Family Relationships","Fictional Families","Curriculum and Social Inquiry","Liberal Studies"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/668"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["An analysis of the families in twenty books, five taken from each of the 1980-1983 lists of Books for Young Adults, was used to determine if the families in the books accurately portrayed the American family. Three instruments were applied to the fictional families to gather information on the family history, characteristics, and relationships.
The families in young adult literature were found to accurately reflect the American family in marital status, number of children per family, and the persons with whom children were living. An unrealistic number of the families, however, were characterized as middle class or affluent. Only two of the families were classified as poor.
The nuclear family was the most common family structure in the books for young adults; the parental relationship was egalitarian which reflects the changing American families which have moved from the authoritarian relationship of the fifties. A majority of the mothers worked outside the home and were depicted in diverse careers.
The family members described their family's characteristics as more positive than negative. The strongest characteristic was the individualism of each member; the weakest was the togetherness of the family.
Missing from this group of fictional families were minority groups and families from sections of the United States other than the Northeast and Midwest.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An Analysis of Twenty Books for Young Adults in Terms of Family Characteristics, According to Selected Sociological Variables"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. James Brewbaker","Dr. Carolyn M. Cartledge","Dr. Anita Whitman"],"dc:creator":["Wise, Elaine Vann"],"dc:description.abstract":["An analysis of the families in twenty books, five taken from each of the 1980-1983 lists of Books for Young Adults, was used to determine if the families in the books accurately portrayed the American family. Three instruments were applied to the fictional families to gather information on the family history, characteristics, and relationships.
The families in young adult literature were found to accurately reflect the American family in marital status, number of children per family, and the persons with whom children were living. An unrealistic number of the families, however, were characterized as middle class or affluent. Only two of the families were classified as poor.
The nuclear family was the most common family structure in the books for young adults; the parental relationship was egalitarian which reflects the changing American families which have moved from the authoritarian relationship of the fifties. A majority of the mothers worked outside the home and were depicted in diverse careers.
The family members described their family's characteristics as more positive than negative. The strongest characteristic was the individualism of each member; the weakest was the togetherness of the family.
Missing from this group of fictional families were minority groups and families from sections of the United States other than the Northeast and Midwest.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/668"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:subject":["Books for Young Adults","American Family","Family History","Family Relationships","Fictional Families","Curriculum and Social Inquiry","Liberal Studies"],"dc:title":["An Analysis of Twenty Books for Young Adults in Terms of Family Characteristics, According to Selected Sociological Variables"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Teacher Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Specialist in Education"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:45:18Z"}